Five Little Known Facts About Debt Collectors' Rights

By Sean Payne

If you are in debt, you're probably already aware of the rights you have under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which is also known as the FDCPA, says that you have the right to expect certain debt collection practices from debt collectors.

The FDCPA specifies exactly when debt collectors can contact you, how they can do it, and what they can tell you in order to collect on a debt. One example is that a bill collector can't tell you a lie or misrepresent the truth about your debt. The FDCPA was created after a long string of debt collectors abusing people to collect on debt. What you probably don't know about the FDCPA, however, is that even bill collectors have rights.

The first of their rights is to communicate with you in order to let you know about any debts you owe. They can do this via telephone or letter. In this communication, they can let you know exactly what you owe, including whatever fees or penalties they may charge you.

Second, they have the right to contact you until you let them know in writing that you don't owe them money, that you don't owe as much as they say, or that you demand that they provide verification that you owe the debt. Of course, under the FDCPA, they're limited in when and how they can communicate with you, but if they stay within the rules of the FDCPA, they can keep contacting you until you tell them to stop.

Thirdly, if the original creditor and the debt collector are one and the same, or the debt collector is an in-house agency affiliated with the original creditor, they're allowed to keep contacting you even if you ask them to stop. The reason for this is that the FDCPA doesn't see creditors as being the same as debt collectors, so they don't have to operate under the same rules as debt collectors do. Of course, they still have to obey the guidelines of decent behavior as outlined by the FDCPA, including not annoying people that you know, or calling you during all hours of the night.

Fourth, a debt collector has the right to contact others about your debt. They can only do this once, though, and they can only do it to find out your address, your telephone number, or the place where you work. They are, however, prohibited from contacting any third party multiple times, because that would be harassment.

Finally, a debt collector has the right to sue you to collect on a debt that you owe. Of course, you have the right to defend yourself in court, but if a judgment is made against you, your wages may be garnished.

If you have to deal with debt collectors, know your legal rights. But make sure that you also know the rights that the FDCPA gives to debt collectors. Knowing this can help you to deal with them more easily when they become a problem. - 23204

About the Author:

Sean Payne is a personal finance and debt relief enthusiast. After paying off his own debt, he devoted years to finding the easiest way to pay off debt, and maintaining your sanity while dealing with debt collectors. To learn more about debt collectors' rights, and what you can do to preserve your peace and quiet, check out his excellent debt reduction course.

Software You Can Use to Get Out of Debt Software You Can Use to Become Debt Free The Best Software for Getting Out of Debt The Best Software Programs for Getting Out of Debt

By Sean Payne

If you're stuck with loads of debt, you may have noticed that many of those who get out of debt tend to use some kind of financial software. There's a good reason for them to do so: It works like crazy!

Success leaves clues. There's no doubt about this. What this means for you is that people who have successfully gotten out of debt have done specific things and used specific techniques to find their escape from debt. If you do the same things they did to get out of debt, you can expect to be able to get out of debt as well.

One of the things that successful people do to get out of debt is making a debt payoff plan, and then working that plan. Once you've developed a plan for getting out of debt, the right debt software will help you stick to that plan.

The best software for getting out of debt is called budgeting software. I like to use a spreadsheet program known as "You Need A Budget". It has done so much to help me get out of debt. I credit my success in getting out of debt to my budgeting spreadsheet program.

There are many other great budgeting software programs. One popular program, known as Mvelopes Personal, is a web-based budgeting system that allows you to access your budget from anywhere that has Internet access. It also access your bank accounts to automatically enter your purchases into your budget.

One free budgeting program is Mint. Its also a web-based budgeting system, but it doesn't cost anything to use. One unique feature of Mint is that it compares the rates you're paying on your debt to offers from credit card companies. If it finds a better rate for you, it will let you know, and it could end up saving you hundreds of dollars while you're working to pay off your debt. Similarly, if it finds a bank account that pays a higher interest rate than yours, it will let you know, giving you the potential of earning much more money on your savings.

Besides budgeting programs, there are other debt reduction programs, both free and paid, that will help you stick to your plan for getting out of debt.

Intuit's Quicken and Microsoft's Money are both programs that can help you so create a budget and manage the rest of your finances. Both of these programs have related capabilities, so whichever one you decide to use, they'll both do about the same thing. One of the complaints I have about these two programs is that they do too much. They have so many features that you will probably be distracted from your plan to get out of debt.

My advice to you is to stay with a simple budgeting software program. The right budgeting program will let you track your debts, expenses, and income. Don't make the error of using a complicated financial program that has too many bells and whistles. Even a simple spreadsheet can help you manage your money, budget I recommend that you use an established budgeting system that has a history of getting people out of debt.

Regardless of which software you use to help you get out of debt, start today, and continue to use the same software until you get out of debt. Be consistent in using it, daily or weekly depending on your situation, and your software program will help you to quickly get out of debt. - 23204

About the Author:

If you're serious about becoming debt free, the right debt free software can get you out of debt much faster. Discover Sean Payne's hot tips at his budgeting software program website.

401k Advice

By Mike Swanson

The majority of us believe that we are invincible in our teens and early 20s. But, as time passes, we realize that we are not and are in need of 401k advice. That is why you should invest for retirement. Perhaps you are able to survive on a smaller income in your youth, but later on, it becomes too difficult.

As we age, we are not in top form, and therefore can find it difficult to work, even if you can find work, which is also very challenging. Furthermore, medical conditions kick in and illnesses that require expensive medication to treat. Government pensions do not offer enough to cover medical expenses, medications, food, rent, and everything else we need to live.

With that said, it is important to find good investments that will grow over the years. The best is to start investing for your future as early as possible. This way, your money will double and triple and continue to rise in value over the years. By the time, you are in your retirement, you won't only have something that you can fall back on, you may even be able to enjoy life and travel the world.

Learning how to properly place your money can make all the difference. You must have a balanced portfolio for the different fluctuations in the market. For example, some people choose high risk investments, while others only feel comfortable with low risk or guaranteed investments. Of course, the latter earns much less interest than the former. But in all, it is important to have some of each.

Think about what you want to achieve before placing your money. Budget yourself accordingly, and be completely honest about how much you need to live, and how much you can put aside for the future.

There are many options to choose from, regarding your investments. You can choose regular GICs or CDs which are generally safer than any other type of investments; government bonds, mutual funds, precious metals, and so many more. The bottom line is to invest in something you're comfortable with and know that it is for the future and therefore needs time to grow. In other words, you may not see great results overnight. - 23204

About the Author:

For more articles from Mike Swanson sign up to his stock strategies weekly newsletter.

Free Forex Training Don't Waste Another Minute

By Chris Green

Looking for the best free forex training out there? Well if that is the case, you should know that the best training is never free. A lot of traders have this miss conception that there is good training out there that is free. Who do you think is going to have the better of the two, someone offering you a training guide for free, or someone that is selling their training system like hot cakes? The person selling the guide is able to charge that price for a reason, it is because the guide they offer has was more relevant information that people are willing to pay for.

Taking a peek at many free forex training guides, it gets easy enough to tell that they have similar information that sounds like canned bull. Most of the information doesn't sound very beneficial to even the starter trader. If this is what you are relying on, I hope you don't trust to make a career out of it.

Free forex training guides are usually just a bunch of compiled random facts and information that you don't benefit from. These in my opinion are just a misleading distraction for traders to get easily mixed up in. Think about it this way, why would someone spend their time making a free guide that would benefit other traders from their secrets that they have discovered?

If you take a look at free forex training from this perspective, maybe you could have a better understanding. If someone is willing to pay for the information, it is showing how serious they are about succeeding in that field. The person that is offering that support is willing to spend a lot of their time to make it, and make it right because they know that they are dealing with serious people that want serious tips and crucial information. This alone will make a paid guide far better than any free guide that you may find out there.

So should I stick to free forex training guides? No, if you are serious about being a successful foreign exchange trader, then you should be looking for more than a simple free gimmick that isn't going to give you much useful information. If you want to get the right tips and secrets on making yourself a successful trader, then you must check out this guide that I have been serious about. This guide will show you what free guides wont. Take your trading serious, and get a proper training guide today to make your profits for tomorrow a whole new experience. Make your profit margins as massive as you want! Don't delay, the goldmine of guides is found for you, so you don't have to waste your time searching. - 23204

About the Author:

If you want to get out of the ditch and make a buck, check out the "Big Wigs" Free Forex Training. If you have read up to this point, and you want to make real profits for your self, stop letting the "Big Wigs" spoon feed you tips, find out their insider Free Forex Training.

The Many Uses of Gold

By Will Paul

Gold has a diversity of special properties that make it the most useful of all the minerals mined today. This is because gold conducts electricity and does not tarnish. Gold is very easy to work with and can be drawn into wire. Gold can also be hammered into thin sheets and can be mixed with different metals. The wonderful color of gold leaves a special impression on most people.

Gold has a long history. When the "New World" was first explored by the Spanish, they met the native South Americans for the first time. Even though they both lived entirely different lives and spoke different languages they had one thing in common; that was gold. Most societies hold gold in the highest esteem and have always used it to make the most important objects. Today we continue to use gold for objects including wedding rings, jewelry, Oscars, Grammy's and money.

The first use of gold was over 6000 years ago and was used for ornamental objects. Gold is found in its pure state and very easy to work with. Jewelry tops the list for the primary use of gold in the United States. Most of the gold found today is newly mined or recycled and about 78% of gold consumed today in used to manufacture jewelry. Throughout history gold has always been used as a form of medium for bartering or used as money. The gold used for financial backing for currency was usually in the form of gold bars and was also known as gold bullion. The gold bars helped to keep manufacturing costs to a minimum and was also convenient for handling and to store. Many governments and individuals hold investments of gold in the form of bullion.

Gold is used in the industrial field by manufacturers of electronics. Most electronics use very low voltages and currents and can be easily interrupted by corrosion or tarnish at the contact points. Since gold is a highly efficient conductor that can easily carry these low currents without corroding it is used in many things. Gold is used in connectors, switch and relay contacts, soldered joints and connection strips.

Gold can be found in many different areas and places in a desktop and laptop computer. Gold works well for computers because allows for rapid and accurate transmission of digital information. It is better than any other metal for this purpose. Edge connectors used to mount microprocessors and memory chips onto the motherboard are made of gold. The gold in these components are generally electroplated onto other metals and have small amounts of cobalt or nickel in them to increase durability.

Gold is a very versatile and has played an important part in history and is still as valuable today. It takes a lot of natural resources to mine for gold. The high demand for gold makes the cost of gold rise. This could be to your advantage if you have some gold pieces of jewelry that you no longer wear. You can recycle your precious metals for money and also be helping the environment. - 23204

About the Author:

The best online resource to sell palladium or sell silver can be found at www.refinity.com